2002 Yearly Report

This event was a combined run/walk
event with the Australian Centurions joining with the Coburg Harriers
as co-hosts. Some 50 competitors fronted the line with competitors
split across the following divisions

6 Hour Run
12 Hour Run
24 Hour Run
6 Hour Walk
24 Hour Walk

23
4
12
1
10

The races started at 10AM on Saturday
13th and it was a wonderful sight to see the large number of walkers
and runners circling the 400m athletics track over the next 24 hours. A
computerised lapscoring system was used
and enabled a small number of dedicated enthusiasts to successfully run
an
event of this magnitude. Early conditions were drizzly but the weather
soon
cleared and only one further shower late in the afternoon spoiled the
otherwise
good conditions.

At the end of the 24 hour race when the
final gun sounded, 9 of the initial 12 running competitors and 9 of the
initial 10 walking competitors were still circling the track. This is a
very high finish ratio and indicates the support that all the runners
and walkers got from each other as the
race progressed.

In the 24 hour run, Mick Francis was
the overall winner with 216.298 kilometers while Mikela Ward came first
in the women's catogory with 104.540 kilometres.

In the 24 hour walk, Carol Baird, Lyn Lewis, John Harris
and Karyn Bollen finished
1,2, 3 and 4 respectively. All achieved the Centurion standard of 100
miles (162.134 km) in 24 hours. For Carol and John, it was a case of
once again while for Lyn and Karyn, it was a first time achievement and
qualifies them for membership of the elite Australian Centurions.

The last few hours of the event proved
an exciting period. First Carol Baird powered past the 100 mile mark in
20:31:34 to break her Australian residential ladies record. Then as the
23 hour mark approached, only a few laps separated Lyn, Karyn and John.
First Lyn passed the 100 mile mark in 22:46:54 to become the first
Australian woman to have run and walked the 100
mile within 24 hours. Then Karyn collapsed with only a few laps to go
for
her 100 mile. Her feet were a complete mess with blisters and a quick
First
Aid patch up was required before she could limp home. That let John
Harris
pass her in the dying minutes to reach the 100 mile mark in 23:34:50.
Just over a minute later, Karyn passed the milestone in 23:35:56.

All 4 competitors continued to walk
towards the 24 hour mark at varying paces and less than 2 laps
separated them at the end.

Carol
Baird (C 39) completed her 6th Centurion performance in the last
3 years. She has now walked 100 miles within 24 hours 4 times in
Australia, once in New Zealand and once
in Malaysia. On this occasion, she broke her Australian records for 100
km, 100 miles and 24 hours with an awesome performance. Carol just gets
better every time she steps on the track.

Lyn
Lewis (C 44) is an
accomplished ultra-distance runner and is a former racewalker over the
shorter
distances. With such a dual background, the quest for Centurion
membership was an obvious one and eventually Lyn decided to have a go.
She was able to
reach the 100 mile mark in just under 23 hours to become the first
woman in
Australia to have completed 100 miles within 24 hours in both running
and
walking mode. This is a very rare feat which until now had been
restricted to only a few Australian men.

John
Harris (C 12) is now a triple Australian Centurion, having done
the hundred previously in 1975
and 1998. John had not done his usual preparation for such a tough
event and he had to draw on all his reserves to reach the 100 mile mark
in 23:34:50.

Karyn
Bollen (C 45) is
a complete newcomer to the ultra scene. She competed in the 12 hour run
in
the 2001 Coburg 24 Hour event and walked most of the way to a distance
of
79.4 km. Her walking on that occasion was so impressive that it was
suggested she give the Centurion challenge some thought. She came back
some 12 months later and produced a superb performance, overcoming
horrendous blisters to reach the 100 mile mark in 23:35:56. It was a
wonderful moment for Karyn, her supporters and the spectators as she
crossed the line. She was awarded
the Jack Webber Memorial Trophy for the most meritorious walking
performance
of the day.

Geoff
Tranter is a very accomplished Centurion, having completed the
British standard on 12 separate occasions. He is also a Continental,
American and New Zealand Centurion. His
best performance is an astounding 129 miles of walking within 24 hours
in
1981 in England. He made the trip to Australia with fellow Birchfield
Harriers
walker John Fenton to try for the last Centurion badge to complete his
collection.
Unfortunately, he just failed, being just short of 98 miles at the time
the final gun was fired. Geoff gave it a real go but was just not quite
fast enough in the first 12 hours of the event.

76 year old Centurion Stan Miskin (C 23) had a great day,
breaking his AURA (Australian Ultra Runners Assn) 75+ records for 12
hours, 100 km and 100 miles and just falling short of his 24 hour
record. Of course, these are running records and Stan walks! Stan is
already an Australian Centurion, having done his 100 mile walk in 1998
and he, like Lyn Lewis, is one of the few Australians to have completed
the run/walk 100 mile/24 hour doubles.

NSW walker and ultra athlete Steel Beveridge
came down a fourth time to try for Centurion membership but, once
again,
found himself short of the final target. He was able to complete 50
miles
in the first 12 hours but faded in the second half of the event.

John
Belfio entered the
event with the hope of walking 100 km in 24 hours and was rewarded with
a
very good first up 112 km.

British Centurion John Fenton was our second overseas
walker but on this occasion, it was not to be. He was not comfortable
and struggled early to reach what must have been a personally
disappointing 110 km.

Young Melbourne racewalker Graham Watt was back for his 4th
walk in our annual Centurion event. On the other occasions, he has
reached exhaustion point in the 50-60 km range but this year he managed
to get to the 98.4 km mark before being forced to withdraw. This was a
much better performance by Graham and indicates that he has the
potential to go all the way if he sets his mind to it.

Congratulations to all involved,
especially to the volunteers and participants. The spirit of 24 hour
running and walking lives on until next year's event.

AUSTRALIAN RESIDENTIAL RECORDS

Carol Baird
Carol Baird
Carol Baird

ACT
ACT
ACT

100 km
100 miles
24 hours

12:37:50
20:55:46
176.728 km

The
Jack Webber Trophy is awarded to the most meritorious Centurion
performance. This year, it was awarded to Karyn Bollen for her very gutsy
performance.

Congratulations to those who competed.
I look forward to seeing some of you back again next year to try to
improve on your performances when we host the Year 2003 Centurions Walk
in New South Wales.